The present invention regards a sterile workspace with removable layers for use on medical surfaces such as anesthesia workstations, as well as other surfaces. Presently surfaces such as those provided on anesthesia machines must be sanitized between procedures to avoid patient cross contamination and potential nosocomial infections in operating rooms. The layered sterile assembly of the present invention provides a plurality of sanitized workspaces that remain independently sterilized until ready for use.
It is well established that the risk of infection from various drug-resistant organisms remains in operating and procedure rooms so long as work surfaces actively used in these environments are not properly cleaned and disinfected. While present methods of disinfecting work surfaces includes human application of disinfecting wipes, bleach and ultraviolet light, there is significant evidence that surface cleaning is not done as well as protocols require, and the risk of hospital acquired infections (HAI) transmitted from un-sanitized work surfaces remains high. The cost of HAI is significant, not only to human life but also to expenses resulting from increased length of patient stay and necessary healthcare. Financially, HAI has been estimated to contribute between $28-45 billion on the healthcare system. A Case Report from the Anesthesia Incident Reporting System, Anesthesia Quality Institute (May, 2013). Human cost from HAI has been estimated at over 99,000 deaths per year, or a 5% death rate. Schwegman, Prevention of Cross Transmission of Microorganisms is Essential to Preventing Outbreaks of Hospital Acquired Infections, Welch Allyn 2008.
While the necessity for sterility of medical devices has long been recognized and is consistently being optimized, both in device design and packaging, the sterility of work surfaces continues to be addressed through procedures and protocols susceptible to failure. Arias, Contamination and Cross Contamination on Hospital Surfaces and Medical Equipment, Initiatives in Safe Patient Care, Saxe Healthcare Communications, 2010. Therefore there is a need to consistently provide a sterile work surface for use in medical procedures, which overcomes human failures in comprehensively following established protocols to clean work surfaces, the use of which will result in a decrease in transmittal of HAI, benefitting the health of patients and mitigating a significant financial burden on the healthcare system.